


Soulmates

by Moonalight



Series: Burning Heart [2]
Category: Max Steel (TV 2013)
Genre: Angst, Child Soldiers, Distrust, Fluff and Angst, M/M, romantically, they're together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:28:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27272701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moonalight/pseuds/Moonalight
Summary: Max and Steel are both getting tired of being treated like nothing more than soldiers. They don't need the world. The world needs them. And now that they're together, they won't let anyone get in their way. It's time the people in their life realize that they're more than just pawns they can put wherever they wish. And if they don't get the point, then they'll lose the duo to their blindness.
Relationships: Max McGrath/Steel
Series: Burning Heart [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987615
Comments: 11
Kudos: 22





	1. Outburst

******  
Max wasn’t afraid to admit he was disappointed. That seemed to be all he was anymore. Disappointed in himself, in the people around him, in the world itself. It felt like everyone and everything was battling him every step of the way. 

Maybe every teenager felt that way. But every teenager didn’t have takion energy building up in their bodies. Or an ultralink chained to their very mind, soul, and heart. 

He wasn’t complaining about that though. He was very happy with Steel. 

No. He was complaining about the fact that he was finally with the one he loved, his other half, and hadn’t been able to discuss it in the week since their confession in the mindscape. 

Confession might be a weak word for it considering they had both been aware beforehand, but it was still the moment they both said that they loved the other. And the moment Max was able to actually hug Steel for the first time. In his human body. 

But why was it that all the troubles decided to arise immediately after?

First they’d been dragged away from that amazing meeting thanks to an NTek alert going off. It had turned out to be a false alarm, but Commander Forge had used it as an excuse to put them through several hours of grueling training. They’d both been too tired to do anything but sleep after.

Then there had been homework assigned out of the blue, his mother needing help at THI, an elemental had decided to wreck downtown, Berto had caused an explosion in the labs they were sent to deal with-

It never ended, and they never got another chance to use the mindscape together. They hardly even had time to talk about anything but work. 

So, yes, Max was disappointed and upset and frustrated beyond belief. 

He just wanted a couple hours. Was that so much to ask? Just a couple hours to talk to his best friend-boyfriend-and figure where they were exactly. 

Everyone that commented on his mounting grouchiness was swiftly put down verbally by one of the two partners. Max knew he wasn’t alone. He could feel it in his mind constantly, the only thing keeping him sane, Steel was just as frustrated about this. 

They didn’t owe NTek anything. They didn’t trust them. So what if they bit off a few heads? Neither of them could bring themselves to care. 

And finally, they broke.   
******  
Max gritted his teeth as he listened to the commander prattle on about proper manners when dealing with coworkers. It felt like the fiftieth time he had reheard the point, worded differently every time Forge started the lecture over.

He liked to play the role of concerned paternal figure. He didn’t do it very well. 

That guy had been asking for it. He had the audacity to judge Max for his dark mood when he didn’t even know him. It wasn’t as though he’d thrown any punches. That would’ve left the jerk with more broken bones instead of broken pride. 

They’d just verbally assaulted him to death in both their anger. 

It had become a bit of a spectacle. None of the other agents had been willing to step in between that onslaught of pent up frustration. So naturally, they ran to get his uncle. Like that would solve anything. 

All it did was make them more upset. Neither of them wanted to be anywhere near Forge when he was the reason they were so angry. 

Every second of every day that they had a spare chance to try and use the mindscape, he was calling them in. 

Whether it was disgusting chores to ‘teach them that they have to work just like anyone else,’ or training that left them sore and bruised beyond reason so that ‘they wouldn’t get rusty.’ It was completely pointless. 

But what finally broke Max’s patience, was when that man tried to turn it all back onto them. 

“...and lately Steel is never separating from you!” The man boomed, walking back and forth in front of the annoyed teens just like the army commander he was. Unlike his station dictated, he didn’t recognize the danger he had suddenly put himself in. He didn’t notice the way Max straightened up and clenched his fist.

He just kept right on talking. 

“He’s always in the suit, keeping silent. And you! You haven’t been speaking either! How disrespectful do you plan to be, Max? Your mother didn’t raise you like this. Your father would be disa-”

That sentence never reached its conclusion. 

Because the next second Forge was half slumped against the wall on the other side of the room, blue energy wafting off of him with residual charge. 

It flowed around Max in his fury. Sparking and flickering dangerously as his eyes came alight. The only thing holding him back was Steel. Steel, who kept whispering in his mind that it wasn’t worth it. 

Shouts burst out around them. The quiet observers that had been watching the tension grow now witnessed the outcome of pushing someone past the edge. 

Max saw the shock in his uncle’s eyes. He saw the blatant anger and confusion. Emotions he had no right to be feeling. It made him want to throw the man again. 

But he didn’t. Because Steel pushed him away from it. 

So as everyone else ran to the commander’s side, worriedly balking over him, their ‘hero’ slipped away. 

The sixteen year old boy slipped away without a word for them to hear.  
******   
They knew precisely where they were going without even asking each other. Somewhere safe. Somewhere for only them. 

It hadn’t been that long since Steel figured out how to stop NTek from tracking them. A skill they were both extremely happy he had as they flew off radar into the desert.

Before they found out Max wasn’t entirely human, before admitting their feelings for each other, they had been looking for somewhere safe to mindscape. Home wasn’t safe because of his mother, and no way would either of them be willing to put themselves in such a vulnerable position around those traitors. 

So they had gone looking for a place all their own. 

And they’d found a little place. A small cavern, deep in the desert that they stumbled on after getting tossed across the scorched land by a furious elementor. It was quiet and peaceful. Far from all their problems. 

None of their problems knew it existed. 

The cavern wasn’t what was interesting. It was a normal underground space. With rocks and spires and a small pool of water. Nothing of real importance. 

It was what it could offer them. 

Safety. A lonesome place where they didn’t have to worry about being interrupted.

...

Max settled into a comfortable position on the ground. He was hidden amongst the stalactites spiralling up into the cavern’s ceiling. If anyone entered, they wouldn’t see him unless they went looking. 

It was dark and chilly, but it was what he wanted. 

He closed his eyes. They didn’t even need to focus anymore to enter the mindscape. It was their natural state now. The place they went back to. 

The feeling of drifting there was the only thing that could truly calm Max. It stole away every volatile emotion he held in and left him with only one in return. 

Relief. 

He opened his eyes. The dark walls of stone were no longer surrounding him in this place. It was brighter, more colorful. Their quiet little forest grove was just as it always was. Completely disconnected from everything else. 

Precisely what he needed at the moment. 

And one other thing. 

Arms wrapped around Max’s shoulders, clasping over his chest tightly. He felt a breath on his neck that he knew wasn’t real. It was just a hologram. But it felt real and at this point he couldn’t much care about the difference. 

All he cared about was the fact that he was finally with him again after a week of wanting.

“Steel,” the name was a sigh from his lips as he completely sunk into the other’s grasp. He relaxed against him, giving himself up completely as the grove grew dimmer. Dimmer. 

Until the light around them was gone. Shadows stretched out as time changed, the fake sky above them growing dark. Little dots littered his view, shining down on them and illuminating the grass they sat in. It all turned from day to night with only a few seconds in between. Flickering lights began to appear all around them; fireflies illuminating their own way through the darkness, and Max knew he wasn’t the only one that needed this. 

“You’re right,” his partner mumbled against his neck, sending shivers across the boy’s skin, “I needed this.”

They stayed like that for a long while. Just the two of them. Steel’s arms around him and his mind finally calm. 

This was how they always should be. Any issues his outburst caused earlier, they would deal with at another time. For now, all that mattered was them.


	2. Exhaustion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He was just...exhausted. Mentally, physically, emotionally.

******  
“Steel,” Max murmured, dreading the conversation he was about to start. All he wanted was to stay as he was. Curled up on his side in holographic grass. Watching glowing fireflies flicker by with his boyfriend’s arm acting as a pillow; a position he’d never been in before. 

And he knew that was all the ultralink wanted as well. He could feel it. A deep contentedness in his chest that resonated with peace and care. Enjoying the time they’d gotten to spend together again more than he’d enjoyed anything in the week past. 

But as much as they wanted to, they couldn’t ignore it forever. 

“I know, I know,” Steel sighed, his aqua eyes sliding close as Max looked up at him, “We have reality to get back to, people we have to apologize to-who don’t deserve it, I feel I really must say, and-” 

“Apologize?” Wicked spite and bitterness made itself known as the brunette scoffed, shaking his head against the soft white tee shirt he was nestled against, “No way. We didn’t do anything wrong!” 

For a moment the other was silent. His emotions were clear to Max, and slightly amusing. 

While Steel often was the irresponsible half of their whole, there were times he seemed to feel the need to take up the opposite role. The role of reason and responsibility. 

Now was one such time, but he couldn’t actually correct him genuinely. Because he felt the exact same. Backtracking now would do nothing to disprove the sentiments they shared. 

“Yeah, okay,” the holographic form sighed, reaching up to play with his thick bangs even if they weren’t actually there, “but you know they’re going to demand an apology, right? Both your mom and Forge.” 

Max didn’t answer verbally. 

He was fully aware of that fact. He was a ‘kid’. He was a ‘hero’. He was an ‘adult’. 

Oh, he was very aware of those facts. But strangely enough, he was only whichever was convenient in the moment. A kid when they needed to be above him and make him feel small. A hero when they needed him to step up. An adult when they needed to shame him. 

He fisted at the white shirt that had done nothing to him, anger boiling up with the memories of all that he’d endured in recent months. They...just wouldn’t stop. 

“Hey,” his partner murmured, a warm palm suddenly running down his cheek and getting him to lift his eyes, “I didn’t mean to bring that up. I just meant that we can’t stay forever, or they’ll come looking.” 

And he shuddered to think about them finding their little desert cavern. Their safe space. 

He tilted his head into the hand pressed against his face, relishing the feeling of a thumb running over his skin. Close in a way they never were able to be before. Exactly what he wanted. 

Steel sighed, a small smirk returning to his face as he watched Max’s eyes go lidded. Enjoying the touch he never got from anyone else and had never gotten before from the ultralink. 

The hybrid wasn’t used to physical contact that wasn’t meant to hurt. And this was so different from Steel's actual body. 

“A little longer sounds fine,” the hologram agreed to his unspoken desires, pulling him even closer against his warm side, “I’m sure we can do that much.” 

Even if they couldn’t really, it was what they wanted. 

A little longer with peace before returning to the anger that they were sure awaited them.  
******  
There was no hiding. Not from her, and they were both aware of that fact. 

But they were also tired. Low on battery. The flight back to town had been a stressful affair after they discovered that NTek had jets in the air looking for them. Dodging between rock formations and buildings became annoying fast. 

Which is why all Max wanted was to get to his bed and get to sleep. 

Naturally though, they found a furious McGrath mother waiting. With her arms crossed tight over her chest and a pointed look of disappointment on her face that made them both subconsciously bristle. 

‘Max, mama bear alert,’ Steel warned in his mind, safely linked up and out of sight. 

‘A little late,’ the half human shot back, anxiety spreading through him as his mother’s eyes looked him over slowly. 

“Unlink,” the one order was a cold one. It sent fear striking through Max. A fear of being separated from his other half. He couldn’t trust her, no matter their relation. She was on NTek’s side as always. 

The teen took a step back, the door still open behind him. An action that made her arch one of her brows in judgement. 

‘Max,’ Steel hissed through their bond, worry clear there. 

“Why?” The young brunette asked, tensing when the woman scowled deeply in response. It felt more like he was facing an elemental that his mother. Or Dread, or someone equally as bad. 

And enemy. 

“I want to have this conversation with both of you in front of me,” she explained, her tone still chilled as her foot began to tap against the floor, “So you two can explain why Forge called, shouting about you attacking him and going rogue.” 

“That-” 

‘Don’t,’ his bonded stopped the curse from passing his lips, even greater worry being passed between them, ‘Explain, slowly. Anything else will only bring more trouble for us.’ 

Max took a deep breath, prepared to listen to his boyfriend’s advice. Too bad he didn’t get the chance. 

“You know what?” His mother sighed, and he watched as she closed her eyes. Her posture suddenly became smaller and her voice taking on a new level of exhaustion that had been hidden before. 

“Not tonight. I already informed your uncle that it was just a rebellious outburst, and you’re expected at the base after school tomorrow,” Max’s breath caught as the tired woman turned away, “Just...make sure you apologize properly.” 

There were no words for him to say in response to that. 

All he could do was stare wide eyed as she walked over to her bedroom’s door. Not another sentence delivered to him. No good night, no nothing. She just went inside, and then blocked him out. 

Him, apologize?

Rebellious outburst? 

She didn’t even give him a proper chance to explain, so why was it automatically his fault?!

‘To bed, Maxwell,’ Steel urged in his mind, his body moving without thought to follow the order. His focus still stuck on what had just happened with his mother. 

His mother who hadn’t been on his side, just as he knew she wouldn’t be. 

His holographic clothes flickered and hanged to pajamas even if it didn’t really matter. Closing his door and locking the bolt, letting himself be mentally nudged to the soft surface awaiting him. 

It wasn’t even that he was exhausted physically anymore. 

He was just...exhausted. Mentally, physically, emotionally. 

‘We won’t apologize,’ his partner assured him as he pulled back the blankets to climb into bed, ‘We have nothing to apologize for. They’re the ones that owe us apologies.’ 

‘As if,’ Max thought faintly, getting comfortable as he closed his eyes. Letting the world drift away and his mind float back to the mindscape. 

Not their forest grove, but his room. Changing the shape to perfectly mimic the space he’d just been in. With one major difference. 

The warm body holding him close, under the covers with him.

“Hey,” Steel hummed, his tone forcefully amused for the brunette’s sake, “It’s a nice thought, isn’t it? Imagine. The two of them actually apologizing for all the stuff they’ve put us through! Being real humble and genuine, bowing down and pleading for forgiveness!”

“You’re evil alien roots are showing,” the half asleep boy mumbled, nuzzling close into the chest he was now pressed against, “...but that does sound nice.” 

“Good night,” the ultralink murmured the words he’d been hoping to hear, his consciousness fading as he felt softness press against his forehead, “I love you, Max.” 

“...love you too,” he managed. 

And then he slipped away. Safe for just a little longer.


End file.
